“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 46 One of the best ways for a merchant, tradesman, or businessman to determine if he is thinking biblically about his enterprise when he is managing it is through reflecting on how he behaves when he is a customer. We …
Flogged to the Bone
Minister: Lift up your hearts! Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord! Our great God, Father of Jesus Christ, and the God who bestows the Holy Spirit, we come to You now in the name of this Jesus, in the power of the Spirit You have given, in order to worship You as You …
A Different Kind of King
In the great hymn found in Philippians, we are told that Jesus humbled Himself, and was obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross. Therefore God exalted Him highly, and has given Him the name that is above every name. This is what we celebrate on Ascension Sunday—Jesus Christ is Lord of …
Authority and Clarity
Dear Joel, Thanks for your prompt reply. Let me suggest a format for our letters, if you don’t mind. I would like to respond to your letter in this one. After I do so, the ball is still in my court to move on to the next issue. If you respond to this response, then …
Timeless Truths?
In his essay on how the Bible can be authoritative, N.T. Wright takes issue with the concept of “timeless truths.” He allows that there is a sense in which the Bible is a repository of timeless truths, but he is generally at war with the concept. “All three methods I have outlined involve a certain …
True Lovingkindness
Minister: Lift up your hearts! Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord! Our God and Father, we worship You now, in accordance with Your Word, and in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ. We offer our thanks to You, for we are Your people, and You have thrown down Your enemies, to the …
Worship Topples Idols
The fundamental center of all human history is the issue of worship. In the faithful worship of the true God, we contend with the worship of all idols. Idolatrous societies structure everything around their idolatrous assumptions, and their constant ploy is to try to get true worshippers of God to share in those assumptions somehow, …
Becoming Israel
The Lord Jesus arrived in Israel two thousand years ago in order to show Israel a new way of being Israel. Of course this “new” way was the way that God had always intended; the new way was actually the old way. A new commandment I give you, John said, but it is not actually …
Rewards
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 44 Heavenly things drive earthly things. What we assume about ultimate reality is going to dictate how we behave in day-to-day matters. If we assume that the whole idea of “rewards” is somehow less than spiritual, then we have to …
The Central Thing
Speaking of the doctrine of Scripture, N.T. Wright says, “But such a doctrine usually has to be inferred. It may well be possible to infer it, but it is not (for instance) what Isaiah or Paul are talking about. Nor is it, for the most part, what Jesus is talking about in the gospels. He …